This last Thursday I had the pleasure of seeing The Foons at The Empty Bottle, and for a relatively new band they really knocked it out the park. They hail from right here in Chicago. Starting out as a two-man project between Taed Cejtin and songwriter/instrumentalist Erik Rothlind, it eventually evolved into a five-man group with the addition of Ross Donewald, as well as Taed’s brothers Sam and Will Cejtin.
Describing themselves as punk/indie/pop rock, you can definitely hear the influence of bands like The Strokes, Arcade Fire, and LCD Soundsystem. I would say the LCD Soundsystem is the one I noticed the most, especially on songs like "Palm Song" with Rothlind’s vocals, and "Bad Teen" with its staccato, monotone synths that slowly increase in complexity, in a similar way to "Dance Yrself Clean".
This is to say that I REALLY like
The Foons. I haven’t heard a lot of bands that really wetted my thirst for LCD Soundsystem’s unique style, and The Foons really scratches that itch. And if my enjoyment of the band isn’t enough, you should have seen the rest of the crowd. Openers don’t usually get a huge response from the crowd, especially on a sub-20 degree Thursday night in Chicago; people are still warming up. However, The Foons got a really incredible response. Couples were dancing, there were several different calls for encores, if I hadn’t known better I would have thought they were the main attraction of the show.
So if you’ve been on the lookout for an indie rock band putting its own unique spin on the genre, I’d highly suggest you check out
The Foons. Their debut album comes out on December 12, and I’ll link their socials below so you can hear them for yourself.
https://wearethefoons.com
https://www.facebook.com/wearethefoons/
https://www.instagram.com/thefoons_/
